You are… wrong.

A spray of blood swept across Alice's face. With her left eye widened, she was greeted by the sight of Philrain falling and collapsing, bisected in half from shoulder to hip by something.

She could see it.

The reality of the scene forced Alice to freeze.

She couldn't move.

She couldn't think.

All of her senses were refusing to recognize that this was truly happening.

One match.

Two matches.

Three matches.

The slash, like a white light, struck the dazed Alice even more rapidly than Philrain who was crumbling like a piece of trash. She was unable to release her Bandersnatch or even react to it.

Philrain slumped to the ground, her internal organs and blood spilling out, making a vile sound. Jack was barely able to respond to the surprise attack as he blocked the slash aimed at Alice with his Dáinsleif.

There was something there. In the darkness, where the light Philrain was carrying tumbled and created a blind spot for the light, "something" was present. It emitted such a piercing deadly presence that one would have expected it to burn their skin.

The reason why Jack was able to catch the sharp, light-like slash that was being delivered was because he felt the "killing energy" as a sensation, with his entire body directly assaulting him. If it had been a child, they would have fainted, but it was the overwhelming will of "something".

Killing intent.

Oddly enough, it was akin to the abomination of the Bandersnatch that Alice controlled. The speed at which it was unleashed was superior to that of Alice's.

Four matches.

Five matches.

Six matches.

Jack swung his Dáinsleif amidst the darkness, protecting Alice from whatever was slashing at her. He couldn't even check Alice's condition with a sideways glance.

Has Raffi been killed?

For a split second, I caught a glimpse of Philrain pushing Alice away.

Is she safe?

Even that couldn't be confirmed. It was too fast. If Jack wasn't a Nightmare himself, he would never have been quick enough to compete.

More than three "thrusts" flew at lightning speed in the time a human would take a breath. It was presumably a thrusting weapon; it was probably some sort of rapier-like weapon. But there was no time for deep thought.

In a seemingly eternal onslaught… of mere seconds, Jack concentrated his attention on one priority, which was to protect Alice. He had no room to consider other matters. The darkness made everything unclear. Whenever the opponent's sword and the Dáinsleif encountered each other, there were tremendous vibrations and sparks.

There was a crashing sound.

It was the sound of flesh breaking down; something spurted out and overflowed. As Jack was focused on intercepting the slash, he felt a chill creeping through his chest.

"What's wrong! Alice! Philrain!"

In terms of time, only about ten seconds had passed since Raffi had been slashed. Jack could only shout as he was subjected to a barrage of strikes without even pausing to catch his breath.

◇

The lights went out. Then, with a stunned expression, Philrain crumpled into a strange form. Alice, who had been pushed away, landed helplessly on her buttocks like a powerless girl before Philrain, who had turned into a lump of flesh and blood on the ground.

"…"

She was rendered speechless. Her ears were ringing. It was an extremely intense rumbling in her ears. She has even forgotten how to breathe, with her mouth half-open.

She can hear something.

Was it Jack who was fighting?

What about Raffi?

And Philrain?

Her thoughts were delayed until reality overtook her. Something dribbled down her cheek and onto her lips. It made its way into her half-open mouth. It tasted like blood.

Her vision flickered darkly. The shock of witnessing the reality was so profound that Alice's thoughts were almost twisted. Even the existence of the Bandersnatch had been forgotten.

There was something hitting her right hand. The viscous black blood that squirted out of her mouth was trailing down. The black cat… Raffi, who had been severed in half from his torso was crumpling.

She looked at the front; her body shuddered.

"… Eh?"

When Jack finally caught up with the speed of the strike of "someone" and began to return the blow, Alice uttered her first hoarse cry.

"Raffi…?"

"…"

The black cat, illuminated by the light, was motionless.

"… Phil…?"

Philrain hadn't died instantly. That forcefully brought Alice back to reality.

"Phil!"

With a throat-breaking scream, Alice tumbled over and rushed to Philrain. She was bisected in two from the shoulders and gave Alice a tight smile as her body convulsed.

"M-Master… A… Alice… you're… safe…"

"Phil…? Eh… P-Phil…"

Alice was distraught as she sought to restrain Philrain's wound with her hand.

"R-Raffi also… there… collapsed right there…"

This was reality.

Even the stench and sensation of her internal organs were real.

Philrain's body was slowly losing its warmth.

Everything was real.

Philrain coughed up a clot of blood as Alice hugged her crumpled upper body. She then smiled and whispered in a small, almost fading voice.

"Master… Alice… E-Eat me… Please… devour… me…"

"… What…?"

Shivering, Alice embraced Philrain firmly.

"Quickly…"

"We need to get a medical… person in here as soon as possible!"

"You are… wrong."

Philrain slowly lifted her right hand, which had lost its strength, and stroked Alice's cheek.

"I… want to be… a… part of… Master… Alice…"

"…"

A pathetic sound escaped Alice's throat. Alice was in a state of despair. Her face was stiff, and large tears were streaming down her face. After wiping them away with her hand, Philrain gently placed her mouth over Alice's.